Silenx Effizio Extreme Review

Introduction:

How do you choose what heat sink is best for your system? Are you looking for something to simply give you slightly better temperatures? Maybe you're looking for something to let you increase the level of performance you can get by overclocking your processor? Or maybe you're just looking for a little peace of mind after seeing the temperatures your stock cooling solution delivers? What level of noise are you willing to put up with? How much are you willing to spend? These questions are all things to consider when looking to buy an after-market heat sink for your system. Sure you can go balls out with air cooling and buy the largest and loudest combination of 38mm thick heat pipes, high CFM fans, and a massive copper and aluminum behemoth if all you are worried about is the end result being the coolest temperatures possible. The people at the other end of the spectrum just want a good, solid cooling solution that delivers solid results with a modest cost. Will the SilenX Effizio Extreme meet the requirements of an overclocker or the person that just wants a good solid cooling solution at a modest price?

The Effizio is a tower design heat sink that uses a total of five direct contact heat pipes that carry the load up to the large fin array to be dispersed by the airflow from one of SilenX's low-noise fans. With a modest asking price of under $40, the question is how will the Effizio perform against the competition with price tags that are admittedly substantially higher, but have proven performance track records? The only way to find out is to put it through its paces and come up with a performance profile for it! Let's see if this cooler provides a big bang for buck.

Closer Look:

The packaging of the Effizio Extreme is jade green with a window on the front to show part of the heat sink. The phrases "quietest noise levels", "greatest efficiency", and "superior performance", along with an 18dBA noise rating are all claims made on the packaging that have to be investigated. At the bottom, SilenX goes on to say this heat sink is designed for the enthusiast and gamer. The back of the package shows the silhouette of a fan, as well as the systems this cooler is compatible with - pretty much every current AMD and Intel socket from AM2 to AM3 and Socket 775,1156 and 1366. The right side talks about the five direct contact heat pipes, the fan's optimized air to noise ratio, and the all-in-one back plate. The left side carries the specifications table and compatibility listing.

Popping the box open, you'll find a box of accessories and then the plastic clam shell that holds the heat sink and fan. All of this showed absolutely no damage, so the method is viable for shipping and protecting the heat sink and components.

The accessory bundle contains all the mounting hardware you will need to install the Effizio on any of the currently supported sockets from AMD and Intel. In addition to the mounting hardware, you get a thorough instruction manual, a fan speed controller, a tube of SilenX's own thermal interface material, back plate, and the rubber fan mounts. The back plate can be used with all the supported sockets for both AMD and Intel. The fan controller will help bring the speed of the 2000 RPM FDB fan down to a cool 800 RPM for dead silent operating characteristics.

SilenX also threw in a SilenX IXTREMA 120mm silent fan. This fan is engineered to "push more air per revolution at lower noise levels than any other fan on the market". Operating specifications include the use of a fluid dynamic bearing, 800RPM rotational speed, a mere 9 dBA noise level, and 38 CFM worth of airflow. SilenX uses a patent pending blade design, a smaller motor hub, and forward swept blades to reach these levels of both noise and airflow.